Box Turtle and Tortoise Discussion :: change in eating habits

[Starchick]

Apollo has generally been a very good eater...he always ate anything we gave him, from pellets to vegetables to fruit to worms. Michael went on a business trip early last month and as soon as he left, Apollo stopped eating. We figured it was just the change from his normal routine stressing him out, as it was also the start of daylight savings time. After a couple days I started to worry and gave him superworms, which he ate, no problem. Since then, he refuses to eat anything but worms or crickets. Any pellets or vegetables we give him are completely ignored, even if we put it right in front of him. The only other thing we've been able to get him to eat was a couple bites of strawberry. How concerned should we be? I've told Michael to start dusting the insects so he at least gets some nutrition. He still seems to follow the same schedule, coming out in the morning and bathing, just not eating the vegetables. Any ideas?

[steve]

I don't have any boxies, but he could just be picky right now. Maybe you want to keep track of his weight during this period?

[jenaero]

Mine tends to eat less this time of year. Even tho the temps are kept the same all year, they seem to have an internal clock that knows the season. Steve's right. Just keep track of his weight, let him eat when he feels like it, and keep an eye out for any signs of illness.

[Starchick]

Thank you very much for the advice. I picked up a little diet scale to keep track of him. I also checked his temps and found that his basking spot (where he has been tending to burrow lately) is right at 80 degrees, which is within the range recommended by ATP, but if you guys think it should be warmer I can add a second bulb. He also has his flowerpot heater which he doesn't seem to go near. He seems slightly less active and more inclined to stay buried, but gets really excited for worms and eats as many as we'll give him. He also ate a little bit of boiled egg.

We're dusting the worms to make them more nutritious, would it be beneficial to try to feed the worms vegetables?

[steve]

For worms, I think some keepers inject meds into them for turtles and torts to eat, I wonder if you can also pump some vitamins in them as well...